How the Holy Spirit Keeps Us Balanced
Illustration:The more we know of God, the more unreservedly we will trust him; the greater our progress in theology, the simpler and more childlike will be our faith.
J. G. Machen.
1. The Holy Spirit keeps us balanced with His sensitivity to our inclination to get out of balance. Dr. Luke wrote about how the Holy Spirit brought the apostles into balanced thinking during their debates regarding Gentile circumcision and requirements to obey the law of Moses.
He wrote, "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements..." (Acts 15:28)
Ask the Lord to help you be humble, teachable and obedient to how the Spirit prompts you to be balanced in all manner of your personal lifestyle, relationships and ministries.
Illustration: Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man’s power ends.
George Muller.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. The Holy Spirit intercedes for you when you tend to drift toward any extreme position. Paul wrote, "The Spirit helps us in our weaknesses. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." (Romans 8:26) Many people tend to lean toward various extreme perspectives.
Some individuals become so legalistic that they forget they are no longer under the law, but grace. Other individuals become so concerned about traditions that they look more to their ancestors and forefathers than to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. Many secular oriented people are so focused on humanitarian needs that they minimize the reliance of the Sovereign will of God to use human suffering for His purposes.
Finally, some groups grow so spiritistic in their orientation that they end up being so heavenly minded that they are of little earthly good.
Ask the Lord to help you to avoid any of these four extremist perspectives. Trust the Lord for the Spirit to lead you to be more holy, balanced and like Jesus in every way.
Illustration:Faith is to believe what we do not see, and the reward of faith is to see what we believe.
Augustine.
3. The Holy Spirit unites us together with a variety of people in the body of Christ to help us stay balanced. Paul wrote, "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body - whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." (I Cor. 12:13)
Ask the Lord to help you cooperate well with all the members of the body of Christ as they are helpful in keeping each individual balanced according to the Spirit’s uniting.
4. The Holy Spirit reveals Christ’s message to every individual, organization and church to keep them balanced. Jesus said, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." (Rev. 2:7) Ask the Lord to help you listen and heed all aspects of the Spirit’s instruction in balancing your lifestyle and ministries.
Maintaining a balanced spiritual life is a struggle, but is possible with the Spirit’s guidance, correction and empowerment.
5. The Holy Spirit teaches us how to submit to one another as a way of remaining balanced and not too proud to learn from anyone. Paul wrote, "Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." (Eph. 5:21)
Ask the Lord to give you a genuine humble heart so that you are more tender hearted, compassionate and willing to serve one another out a desire to give God greater pleasure.
6. The Holy Spirit uses spiritual songs to edify, encourage and harmonize fellow members in the body of Christ. Paul wrote, "Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything." (Eph. 5:19,20)
Ask the Lord to help you use music as a way of harmonizing people of many different viewpoints into one united voice that pleases the Lord in all
respects and bears greater fruit.
7. The Holy Spirit sanctifies a wide variety of perspectives in the body of Christ for the purpose of bringing more people to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus. Paul wrote, "God gave me the grace to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit." (Rom. 15:15,16)
Ask the Lord to sanctify, cleanse and make you perfectly whole in order to expand your capacities to bring more people into the family of God.
8. The Holy Spirit gives a balance of the fruits of the Spirit to show us where we are deficient in any area. Paul wrote, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." (Gal. 5:22,23)
Ask the Lord to help you to grow up in all aspects in Christ without coming up short in any area.
9. The Holy Spirit wants us to be full of His characteristics while
cleansing ourselves from all fleshly desires that get us out of harmony with God. If you really want to have fullness of joy, you will need to allow the Holy Spirit to have control of your full heart, soul, strength and mind. Paul writes, "So that you may discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory & praise of God." (Phil. 1:10,11)
Ask the Lord to help you to experience more of the fullness of the Spirit and an emptying of your fleshly desires. Pray "Lord Jesus I long to be perfectly whole..."
Conclusion:Live in faith and hope, though it be in darkness, for in this darkness God protects the soul. Cast your care upon God for you are His and He will not forget you. Do not think that He is leaving you alone, for that would be to wrong Him.
John of the Cross.
